(The Hosting News) – A large antitrust investigation of Google might be set to be conducted by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The decision depends on whether or not the Justice Department approves Google’s likely 700 million dollar acquisition of ITA Software Inc., a travel industry corporation.

Google currently dominates the web search industry and some have alledged that the company provides an unfair monopoly. Without naming Google specifically, FTC Commissioner Thomas Rosch stated his support last month for investigating top internet search engines. Shares in the company fell 3 percent Tuesday as fears over the possible investigation increased.

The possible antitrust investigation could be similar to the Justice Department’s 1998 investigation of Microsoft.  The European Commission previously opened up an antitrust investigation into Google in November of last year. Without specifically identifying possible litigation by the FTC, Google released a statement defending its business practices and stated that “competition is one click away on the Internet”.

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